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opy 1 



FHE PEOPLE'S PARTY 



IN THE 



Twenty-Second Ward 



BY 



CHARLES F. JENKINS 






PUBLISHED BY 

The Ward Committee of the City Party 

of the 

Twenty-Second Ward 



THE PEOPLE'S PARTY 



IN THE 



Twenty-Second Ward 



Being a Speech delivered at a Dinner 
given by the Citizens of Germantown 
and Chestnut Hill to the Ward Com- 
mittee of the City Party of the 
Twenty-Second Ward at the Town 
Hall, Germantown, November 17th, 
1905, by Mr. Charles F. Jenkins 



GENERAL COMMITTEE ON ARRANQEHENTS 
FOR THE DINNER 

Richard L. AisTiN JohnJ.Hkxrv I". Butler Kuevks 

Morris L. Cooke, CIni. Charles F. Jenkins Frederick J. Shoykk 

Kern Dodc.e William W. Justice Theo. D.Starr 

KDOAR Dl'DLEY I--AR1ES WiLLIAM I.ONGSTRETH WiLLIAM T. TiLDEN 

Treasurer ALFRED S Miller Andrew K. Wicht 

Alfred C. (tIbson George I). Porter William Wunder 

Walter I'. Hagar Walter Iv. Kex 



PUBLISHED BY 
HE WARD COMMITTEE OF THE CITY PARTY 

OF THE 

I'whnty-Second Ward 



1 5d 
,5 



T. J. PRIESTLEY JR. COMPANY 

PRINTERS 
1312 Sansom St., Philadelphia 



Additional Copies of this Pamphlet can be 
obtained from the WarJ Committee upon 
application. 



Sovu-oe ufiJuiowii 

I7Ja'06 



THE PEOPLE'S PARTY 

BY 

Charles F. Jenkins 



Mr. Chairman and Fellow Members of the City Party of the 
2 2ud Ward : In rising to respond to the subject assigned me this 
evening, "The People's Party of the 22nd Ward," it should be 
distinctly understood that in outlining what I think we stand for 
in this Ward, I am giving expression to my own views alone. No 
one has been consulted. No one knows what I am going to say. 
The policies which are here urged will not become the policies of 
the City Party in this Ward uule.ss they meet with a hearty 
response in you and receive your cordial endorsement and 
approval. 

We have won a glorious victory. The rising flood of ]xi]ni- 
lar disapproval has overwhelmed the forces of evil, and the 22nd 
Ward has proudly taken her position as the leader of the revolt. 
One of our honored citizens has been successfully elected the 
head of the ticket. Two more of our young and virile men have 
stood on each side of the Mayor, doing yeoman — yes, a giant's 
yeoman service for the cau.se of reform. Another one of our 
distinguished citizens has been chairman of our city campaign 
committee, and our councilmen all early rallied to the support of 
tho.se men and measures which tlie great bulk of our citizens 
desired. Others of our weighty citizens have been advising the 
Mayor in his emergency cabinet, and others have been .serving 
on various important connnittees ; and last, but not least, some 
five hundred earnest, awakened, discontented citizens took off 
their coats, rolled up their sleeves, and helped pull out the big- 
gest majority given for the City Party ticket by any ward iu the 



city. Honor to them all, — each and every one ! No wonder the 
22nd Ward smiles and congratulates itself. 
But, fellow citizens : 

" There is a tide in the affairs of men, 

Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; 

On such a full sea are we now afloat, 

And we must take the current when it serves 

Or lose our ventures." 

I think all of us realize that affairs politically are now at 
their flood, and that the time has come when we must take the 
current when it serves. 

We all know that the responsibility of victory is far greater 
than that of defeat, and that the splendid success of November 
7th has placed a greater burden on us than if, outside the breast- 
works, we were still striving for better government and civic 
righteousness. It is to consider these problems, look them 
.squarely in the face, and to decide, if possible, how we are to 
meet them, that we are met to-night. What is to be the policy 
of the City Party in the 22nd Ward ? 

In the first place, we expect to keep up our organization. 
The time has not yet come when, even if invited to do so, we 
want to take over the old organizations or have them swallow us. 
We are too new at the business to fight on equal terms with those 
who are skilled in all the ins and outs, the schemes and tricks of 
self-.seeking politics. Let us go our way and let them go theirs. 
An old garment, threadbare and full of holes, that has been 
somewhat too near a .skunk, is never a nice thing to put on. We 
have a new coat, and it is big enough to take in every decent, 
honest man in this Ward, and we want them to come with us 
into its sheltering warmth. The latchstring is always out to 
every sincere recruit. Furthermore, learning wi.sdom from for- 
mer so-called reform movements, those who were active in pro- 
moting City Party work enlisted for a period of three years and 
as much longer as the war might continue. We are in the fight 
to .stay until the results we are after are obtained. The machine 
politicians who obstruct the sidewalk of the Betz Building, wait- 
ing for the storm to blow over, had better embark at once in 
some legitimate business suited to their ability. 



It is a pleasure, and an eagerly-sought honor, to lead a vic- 
torious host, and already the question has been asked in the pub- 
lic prints and whispered about from ear to ear, Who is to be our 
new leader? Who is the Mayor going to recognize as represent- 
ing the now dominant party in the 22nd Ward ? For the Organ- 
ization, we cannot speak ; perhaps some one at the front will 
select another to lead the fallen forces ; but, gentlemen, so far as 
the City Party is concerned, we want no (?«<^'-recognized leader in 
this or any other ward. I do not know how you feel about it, 
but I do not like the idea of having this grand old 22nd Ward 
called Jesse Shepherd's ward. The idea of five, ten or twenty 
thousand citizens carried in the vest pocket of some office-holder, 
and having their dwelling places described as Hackett's old ward, 
or Trainer's ward, or Durham's, or any other man's ward, should 
make every free-born American boil over with indignation. The 
people themselves must be the leaders, and tho.se who of neces- 
sity must manage the party of the people, should be but their 
representatives to carry out the people's wall. And to-day, rep- 
resenting the voters of the 22nd Ward and their .sovereign leader- 
ship are the eighty-four men, good and true, who compose the 
Ward Committee, and wdio are our honored guests this evening. 
Representing the.se eighty-four men are the officers they have 
chosen and the man they have sent to the City Committee. These 
seven men compose the Ward Executive Committee, and they 
are now the leaders of the 22nd Ward. The single ward "boss" 
must go. Our "boss" has already fallen, and fallen he must 
stay. I fully believe we will find that Committee leadership will 
be the safety valve of the new machine we are building, and that 
the wishes of the people will be the balance wheel which keeps 
it running smoothly. It was because the Organization bo.sses 
tied down the safety valve of their machine and took oft' the 
balance wheel entirel}^ that their boiler exploded, with a roar 
that was heard from Maine to California. 

The days when a man with an honorable ambition to serve 
his city or his ward must go to the so-called leader and get his 
permission to run for the office of his desire, are over. No more 
will that "boss" say to .some farce of a convention, "I want So- 
and-So nominated." The people them.selves will make those 
conventions, and the conventions will make the candidates. I 



would serve notice that it would be the first step towards defeat 
for a man, desiring an elective office in the ward, to solicit the 
secret support of any self-appointed or self-seeking so-called 
leader. 

In the divisions, the division officers must necessaril}' be 
those who must lead and direct the work. And here, too, we 
want unselfish leaders. Men who for pure love of their city are 
willing to sacrifice a portion of their time and means to give a 
reasonable service to the cause of better municipal government. 
Our division associations must be lield together : they must meet 
regularly ; become centres of increasing power ; their officers 
must be elected by representative meetings of the divisions, and 
their membership nmst include all honest men, who are acting 
only for the best interests of their ward. 

The Organization has heretofore represented a pyramid, 
turned upside down, and resting on the apex. The city " boss" 
was that apex, and on up in ever-widening parts were, in order, 
the ward "bosses," the division "bosses," and finally, the 
people at the top. Standing around on all sides were the malign 
influences of graft and the public utility corporations, straining 
and reaching to hold the unstable pyramid in place. Is it any 
wonder it came crashing down when the rotten props were kicked 
away ? And, gentlemen, we want to turn ourselves right side up. 
Let the people l)e the broad foundation of all political and civil 
activity, and let the committees which are necessary to give 
voice to the wishes of a free people rest on them, and the leaders 
who lead get their authority from these committees. Then will 
the foundation be strong and stal)le. Most other reform move- 
ments have been topheavy, their steam came from those who 
were leading them, and not from the better impulses of the 
whole ])eople. The leaders in these movements got tired of 
trying to pull the ])eople along. The Cit}' Party wants to be 
the People's Party, with every citi/.en pushing for all he is worth. 

There are about four hundred ofiice-holders in this ward, 
most of them honest men, many of whom have long fretted and 
chafed under the lash of party " Ijosses." No one is more glad 
than they of their emancipation. Nearly everyone of them gave 
us of his experience or active aid in the last election. While I 
think we would have carried the ward by a fine majority without 



them, yet their openly joining our ranks at the last moment was 
most welcome. I heard of a policeman who is said to have gone 
to the organization ward leader, with tears in his eyes and 
trembling voice, to ask what he should do, that he did not want 
to work for the City Party, but that he had been threatened with 
the loss of his job if he did not come over. Gentlemen, it 
is hard to believe this story. Mr. vSeeds, when he called a 
meeting of the office-holders of the ward, distinctly told them 
there would be no coercion, that they could do exactly as they 
pleased, that as for him, he was going to support the Mayor in 
his fight for honest government, and that on this basis he would 
welcome their support in the independent association he was 
forming. And if there are an}- office-holders who publicly but 
reluctantly are giving their support to the City Party, let them at 
once come out and throw off the mask. To every man filling 
an appointive office under the city or county, I say, that .so 
far as the City Party is concerned, every man who does his 
duty, every man who is industrious and hone.st, and capable in 
his position, must not, will not, be disturbed, if we can help it, 
provided always he does not di.splay that pernicious activity in 
politics, which, on the part of those who are serving the public, 
we deplore. All office-holders nnist feel the .support of public 
opinion back of them, without that continual fear and harrass- 
ment which has been over them. They must feel that they are 
safe in their positions .so long as they serve the interests of the 
people. But the shirk, the grafter, and selfish politician must 
no longer feed from the public crib. The .sooner he gets out and 
makes way for a man of a different stripe the better. 

And when, as it may sometimes happen, the men who are 
serving on our divi.sion or ward or city conunittees are .selected 
as the public .servants of the city, and become office-holders ; or, 
if they embark in business with the city by contract or otherwi.se, 
let them give up tlieir leadership or their committee work. 
What a spectacle it has been to see a city connnittee compo.sed 
of forty office-holders, banded together for nuitual public plunder 
and all .servilely o])eying the orders of two favored city con- 
tractors. 

The days, we hope, are over forever when a man could only 
hold his job by carrying his division. I would like to make it 



work the other way, and say the day has come when a man loses 
his job if he carries his division. The office-holders must be the 
servants of the people, and not the people's " bosses." 

No one in public office must be, or will be, assessed for 
political purposes. And any office-holder who has such a 
demand made upon him may know that such a contribution is 
asked by some dishonest person for some dishonest purpose. 
This practice has been one of the potent agencies in the reign of 
graft. 

Director Potter, we thank yovt that the police and fire- 
men have been* taken out of politics in this ward. We commend 
your noble efforts and sympathize with you in the great burden 
of work and care you have been under. Keep up the good work. 
In my own division last year our two policemen actively worked 
for the organization by soliciting votes at the polls. This year 
they came and voted as every decent citizen should, and then 
quickly went about their important duties elsewhere. This is as 
it should be. Keep the police out of the political clubs, let them 
be guardians of the peace and not of division majorities. I even 
think it would be wise if they did not join the City Party 
Division A.s.sociations. The scandal of the postmen in politics is 
now almost forgotten. Hasten the da}^, our honored 22nd Ward 
representative, when a policeman's activity in active party politics 
will be equally as unknown. The police should be like the judges 
of our courts, the guardians of all parties and active partisans 
of none. 

To those who joined the City Party at the eleventh hour, 
who hopped on the band wagon when they saw it was going to 
lead a triumphal procession, we say, " Welcome." We are glad 
to have them. Their assistance was timely, their services towards 
good government appreciated, their desire for better conditions 
does honor to them, but if their sole object is to get some office 
or to keep some office which thej' have been unworthily filling, 
then we say, "Gentlemen, get back into the ranks; carr}' a 
torch or a flag, or even the water bucket, for a few years, until 
yon can show l)y your unselfish devotion to your city's interests 
that you are entitled to some reward." It will ])e seen that the 
scheming office-.seeker has but little to gain from the City Party, 
as every appointive ofilce which is worthily filled nuist stay filled. 



and in the few which may have to be replaced, an honest civil 
service examination and honest chiefs to take the candidates in 
the order of their excellence and ciualifications, will put in office 
those men best qualified to fill them. 

The City Party platform stands squarely with President 
Roosevelt for the extension and application, wherev'er possible, 
of sensible civil service examinations. Mr Councilmen, you 
who are sitting round the board with us to-night, you can do a 
great service for your ward and city by strengthening the civil 
service board, by employing men trained in the work, instead of 
depending on the public-spirited but voluntary and unpaid 
examiners who now attend to that important duty. With the 
patronage distributed solely on merit and the contracts awarded 
without fear or favor the occupation of the practical politician 
will be over. 

When it comes to the elective offices, let every man who has 
an honorable ambition to serve his division, or ward, come boldly 
out and ask for the support of his fellow-townsmen. This is the 
good old way. Let his friends and neighbors decide if they want 
him or not. It will, perhaps, be hard to change the custom of a 
quarter of a century, and for some time the office will probably 
seek the man and not the man the office. 

Next spring we will elect a councilman to succeed him who 
has received his reward for duty faithfully performed, our victor- 
ious and honored Wilson H. Brown. We nnist not let our 
standard fall below that which he established for himself, of fidel- 
ity to the interests of his ward and a broad outlook for the wel- 
fare of the city. More and more we want our councilmen to 
realize what an honor and opportunity it should be to serve as a 
director of one of the largest corporations in the state. We want 
broad-gauged men, who will help put Philadelphia where she 
belongs, in the forefront of well governed American cities. It is 
all right to see that our ward gets its full share of lamp-posts 
and new paving, and we want that new bridge over the Wissa- 
hickon, and our dangerous grade crossings ought to go, too ; we 
want that Carnegie Library pushed, and we want a High School 
for Germantown, so that hundreds of children will not have to go 
trapsing into the city with its great waste of physical energy and 
a tax of eight to sixteen cents a day on every child — we want all 



lO 

these thiugs, but the 22nd Ward also wants the great affairs of 
the city wisely and economically administered by efficient men, 
whom we send there to help do it. I cannot feel there would be 
any impropriety in my pointing out such men. With the great 
mass of material at our disposal, it may be invidious to make a 
distinction, but any one of these men would strengthen our 
councilmanic delegation. Our own Alfred C. Gibson, or Harlan 
Page, or Thomas B. Homer, or William H. Emhart, or William 
H. Haines, or Henry h. Davis, or Edgar Dudley Paries, or Theo- 
dore Justice, or James M. Dodge, or Samuel F. Houston, or John 
M. Whitall, or Frank Firth, or Charles B. Adamson, or William 
H. Scott. Any of these men, if they were willing to make the 
necessary sacrifice, would be a credit alike to the ward and 
to the city. 

At the coming election in February, in every one of our 
forty-two Divisions, let us see that efficient and honest assessors 
are elected. The experience of our 34th Division, where the only 
City Party assessor was elected last February, shows the wisdom 
of having a man of ability do the work. There were no "phantoms" 
on our list and one of the County Commissioners said it was the 
neatest of any which came into that office. Let us see to it that 
the election judge and majority inspector are men who know the 
duties of their office and are not afraid to perform it. Next Feb- 
ruary all the old school board of twelve members will be to fill. 
The new board should be made up of men, and perhaps some 
women, too, who have their children in the public schools, or 
who are especially fitted for educational work. While their 
duties are greatly reduced, the right kind of men and women 
may still be an efficient aid to the Board of Education. When it 
comes to our Poor Board, we want to put men in who will be 
above the petty graft, which from time to time it has been 
rumored was,an inmate there. Men who will do away with the 
scandals of the outdoor relief. We think, too, the poor tax col- 
lector should not be perniciou.sly active, and if he is to have a 
division which is said to belong to him and be called after him, 
that he had better attend to tl.at and let some less experienced 
politician collect the poor taxes. A man cannot serve two mas- 
ters nor can he hold down two such troublesome jobs at the 
same time. For Auditors of the Poor Board let us .select experi- 



enced business men, who are quick at figures and quick lo detect 
a proper from an improper expenditure. 

Now perhaps all this does not sound like practical politics, 
but practical politics are just what the City Party does not want. 

It was almost exactly a year ago that not more than a square 
from here the City Part)' was launched on what by many was 
regarded as its un{)ractical career, and may it keep right on in the 
same old honest, aggressive, unpractical way ! Its bc^t friends 
can wish it nothing better. So long as we keep near the people, 
and are a part of them and for them, with an eye single, there 
need be no fear of the practical result in the 22nd Ward. And 
the further we stay away from practical politics as practiced in 
this city for the last twenty years, the sooner we will reach the 
goal we are after, an awakened virtue, an aroused civic pride, an 
honest, prosperous, happy citizenship, an honored and ennobled 
Philadelphia. 

Then will we of Germantown be animated by the spirit of 
those sturdy German ancestors, who seeking civic freedom and 
religious liberty, left their homes, and relatives and friends, and 
braving the perils of the deep, penetrated the dark forest and 
founded a new home in a new land. It was their toil and strug- 
gle, their fortitude and love of freedom which helped make it 
proper to emblazon on the shield of this great commonwealth 
those glorious watchwords which to night come to us with added 
significance : 

" ViRTUK, LiHP:RTV and iNDKrENDENCE." 



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